Whether you’re welcoming a new baby into your family in 2024 or simply want to give your little one’s nursery a refresh, there’s an adorable nursery trend out there calling your name. While we love a super serene neutral nursery, this year, we expect to see a lot more diversity when it comes to baby room decor. Here, we’re going to break down the colors, accessories, and design choices that are going to define 2024 nurseries. Spoiler alert—they’re all extremely charming and can grow with your baby. We even tapped two interior design experts to weigh in on these eight nursery design trends.
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2024 Nursery Design Trends We Love
1. Leaning Into Wallpaper
From dining rooms to guest baths, we’ve seen wallpaper making its way into more and more rooms throughout the home. Nurseries are the latest space to lean into this trend. You can have a lot of fun with wallpaper in a nursery, from botanical prints to animal-themed collages to vintage-inspired patterns.
Elizabeth Rees, cofounder of Chasing Paper, is understandably a big fan of wallpaper nursery design trends. “It creates such an imaginative space for a child to develop and grow,” Rees said, “While you can certainly achieve a mood with paint, wallpaper brings the design to a new height. Nurseries are a space where a parent’s imagination can run wild and have fun bringing whimsical, fun ideas to life.”
Nursery Design Tip: Wallpapering an entire room can be expensive, so we appreciate the accent walls many new parents are setting up behind their baby’s crib.
2. Gaga for Gingham
We’re seeing a touch of prep in home decor across the board, and it’s popping up in baby nurseries in a very sweet way. We’re noticing gingham prints in pillows, curtains, crib sheets, wallpaper, and chairs, and we can’t help but melt every time we spot those cheeky checks.
3. Sage Green Reigns Supreme
You can choose whatever color you want for your baby’s nursery—no matter their gender. That being said, if you want to keep things a bit more neutral without going the beige-and-white route, may we recommend sage green? It’s easy to see why sage has been having such a moment in recent years. This nature-inspired hue creates a soothing atmosphere and easily works for a boy or girl.
Nursery Design Tip: Sage green happens to be everywhere right now, which means you’ll have tons of cute nursery decor options to choose from—from big-ticket nursery furniture to sage green accents.
4. Ralph Lauren Vibes
The quiet luxury trend is jumping from our wardrobes to our babys’ rooms. We’re falling head over heels for Ralph-Lauren-inspired boys’ rooms. Plaid, horse prints, and nautical-inspired accessories are all timeless and will work just as well in his room as he ages past traditional nursery decor.
Nursery Design Tip: This is a great trend to thrift. Look for vintage accessories to give the room authentic “old money” buys but on a budget.
5. The Grandmillennial Baby
Now we’re coming for the girl moms who want a classic but fun vibe for their baby nursery. The grandmillennial trend embraces fun prints, sweet colors, and a lot of classic pieces you can pick up at antique shops. This is another trend that will see your little one well past their newborn years.
“This trend can be characterized by a nostalgic and vintage-inspired aesthetic, often featuring traditional patterns, classic furniture, and sentimental decor elements,” Reese shared, “This trend combines modern parenting needs with a touch of old-world charm, incorporating elements like heirloom furniture, floral or toile wallpapers, and vintage-inspired toys, creating a cozy and timeless space for the newest family member.” She went on to note that parents are embracing the grandmillennial style as a way to blend the comfort of the past with the functionality of the present in their baby’s nursery.
6. Forever Furniture
Aside from a crib and a glider (if that’s on your nursery must-have list), there is no need to rush out and buy a ton of baby-themed furniture. Any old dresser can work as a changing table if it’s the right height. We love that many nurseries are incorporating adult furniture like real dressers, daybeds, and comfy seating that you and your child can use for years to come.
“Furniture that is not nursery-specific makes so much sense,” Reese said, “While it can be tempting to buy items in a very specific palette/theme or that only serves a specific nursery-oriented purpose, we always think that utilizing a color that can be more versatile is a better investment.”
Nursery Design Tip: When choosing furniture for your baby’s nursery, think about what pieces will provide them with storage as they age. They’ll only be wearing tiny baby clothes and reading miniature books for so long after all.
7. Textured Touches
From boucle to rattan, there are tons of great ways you can add texture to your baby’s room. Look for ways to incorporate textured fabrics and materials into rugs, chairs, window dressings, and accessories to help add some variety to the room. This is especially fun when you embrace a single color and want to add a bit of dimension to the room.
8. Bold Colors and Mixed Prints
Bold colors or prints, take your pick—or choose both. This year, we’re seeing that parents are having a lot of fun mixing different colors and prints in their baby’s rooms, and we can’t blame them. According to Belinda Pabian, interior designer and owner of Belinda Pabian Interiors, you can take color in any direction you want. “I think we’ll see a departure from neutral-colored nurseries and see parents embracing color,” Pabian explained, “and gone are the days of gender-specific color alignment—think more blues and greens for girl nurseries.
To take things a step further, Pabian recommends painting any millwork a contrasting color to other design elements in the room, “Imagine a room with a beautiful wallpaper and a color pulled from that paper for the millwork. It really puts a designer touch on a room.”
Nursery Design Tip: A baby nursery can also be the perfect spot to have fun with decorating: A space where you don’t have to worry as much about making “safe” decor choices.
